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I think we need a biking bulls@@t alert function. It appears that this has slowly crept in in recent years. At first it just appeared to be journalist speak to pack out reviews as the same old thing got rehashed every year. However it seems to have seemed to have infiltrated normal everyday riders thoughts that it makes them faster/better, or am I just being miserable?
Examples of biking bulls@@t
Pedals - the old flats/spd (depending on the latest fashion) make me quicker more skilled in the rocks/ups/downs which every fits = bulls@@t no they don't unless you are a pro who rides every day but it helps explain why you have more pairs of shoes than the wife when asked gotta have every eventuality covered
Bar width - I just went from 720 to 740mm and I have so much more control = bullish@@t - no they don't they are no different but they look good
Super duper short stem - I have reduced my stem by 10mm and I can now defy gravity on the downs = bulls@@t - no you can't you are no quicker but you can at least tell yourself your bike looks cool
Wheel size - I am so much quicker on my 650 than my is 26 = bulls@@t - you only think you are quicker to justify blowing £3000 you didn't have on a new bike you didn't need
Latest super groupset - I am so much quicker as the cranks are stiffer and it is so quiet = bullish@@t - can you really tell the arms are stiffer maybe if you are a pro otherwise no just tell yourself this so you don't think about the £1000 you wasted
These are just a small number of the examples of biking bulls@@t out there. We need to stamp it out because I keep falling into the trap of believing it and spending a small fortune on stuff that makes no difference and wastes time which I could be using to enjoy just riding!
So what you're saying is you're gullible?
Doesn't the laws of physics prove at least two of them are true?
The best bet is to stop reading the magazines / forums and go ride.
Op Op Op ya gotta stop riding on the roads man.
or am I just being miserable?
Nail. Head.
people who are anti barends, yet have never even tried them.
Feels like the school holidays at the moment, lots of really shit posts.
[s]We[/s] I need to stamp it out because I keep falling into the trap of believing it
FIFU
[quote=njee20]Feels like the school holidays at the moment, lots of really shit posts.
[s]Bulls@@t![/s] You may have a point...
Bulls@@t avoidance tip;
Ride your bike.
If you get overtaken by another bike, buy one exactly like it, because it's obviously faster.
^^ that is flawless logic.
OP- So I guess you're still riding a 22" framed, canti braked rigid 26er ?
Member Supercarp
Orange aren't over priced handmade frames not something you get with YT
Stop trying to be Karl Pilkington's Bulls@@t Man.
650b. Putting me off buying MTB magazines for 12 months now as I'm sick of reading about it.
I changed the stem on my cross bike for one 10mm shorter, and now it fits me better, and don't get twinges in my back when really going for it. So it is quicker as I'm more comfortable.
Bargain price
Great value
Suitable for upgrade
All pretty much sum up most of the BS in my mind
650b. Putting me off buying MTB magazines for 12 months now as I'm sick of reading about it.
Was even worse when all the magazines were full of nothing but 26" wheeled bikes, it was just impossible to escape the 26" wheel marketing bandwagon.
Cor, I bet a 650 with wide bars and short stem with xx1 and flat spd''s will take you to the moon..
[rushes off to buy MBUK]
I don't think that any of the OPs "Bulls**t" effects are actually Bull? In fact, they are pretty much true. The Bull bit, is the amount of difference to the average rider that those changes will make, which is in all cases pretty much immeasurably small!
Unfortunately, for modern bike review/rating magazines, currently MTBs are all so good, and use so many of the same parts, that the differences between a "good" and a "bad" bike come down to minor technicalities and more importantly, trends and personal preference etc!
For example, no one is going to win the UCI Downhill world cup on a set of 140mm Fox 32 forks, and by the same token, I am not going to fit a set of 200mm tripple crown Boxers to my hardtail to ride to the shops, although in both cases you could do so. According to the mags, however, a set of Fox 32's on the front of ones bike is the equivalent of fitting some stringy runner beans as forks, and will immediately lead to almost certain death!
So the "Bull" is not, for example, that the 32s are "not as stiff" as the Boxers (which of, course they aren't) it's that one should not be able to realise that "absolute stiffness" is not actually important, but relative stiffness is. Ie once your forks are stiff enough, that's fine, more stiffness is no advantage.
But what this^^^^ dull and boring objective piece does show, is that the literal "truth" makes for very poor reading.......
I'm popping out for a spin. Back later to tell you all how many records I broke since switching to a 29er.
Laters
supercarp - MemberBar width - I just went from 720 to 740mm and I have so much more control = bullish@@t - no they don't they are no different but they look good
Ironically, it's quite hard to see such a small difference in bar width, but you almost certainly will feel the difference. Bullshit bullshitted.
My colleague swears his 29 is giving him 10-15min quicker times on his usual route over his old 26er. This has nothing to do with the fact his new bike is 6 lbs lighter, 7 years newer and 6x the price of his old bike.
Differences in bar widths and stems however are incrementally noticeable and you definitely can get performance gains. Imo though, this is often through the new set up offering a better fit or riding position for the style of riding being undertaken.
Oi, OP, you[i] belong [/i]to the advertisers.
Prove them wrong. Buy used.
Perhaps you should chronicle all this Op, you could call it [i]Gullible's Travels[/i]...